Monday Stem Innovation launched the iZON Remote Room Monitor, an app-controlled video camera that enables live streaming of audio and video to an Apple iOS device. Don’t have an iPod Touch, iPad or iPhone? No problem. The device will even send the feeds to a private YouTube channel for viewing on a Windows-based desktop, laptop, or Apple’s Mac platform.
“iZON gives our customers an engaging way to stay connected,” says Gary Bart, President and CEO of Stem Innovation. “The combination of its incredible ease of use, automated features and affordable pricing is a game-changer.”
The iZON camera has a built-in wireless adapter, so it can be easily integrated into most home and business networks without much of a fuss. Resembling an external hard drive (or a fancy air freshener), the camera can be placed anywhere within the local Wi-Fi network, whether it’s on a horizontal surface or mounted on the ceiling. It won’t activate until it detects motion or hears a noise within the surrounding area, and will send push notifications to the iOS device once it becomes active. Users can access the feed locally or from anywhere around the world
Since April 2008, Apple and Starbucks have served up free music tracks each week as a reward for purchasing a drink or snack in over 11,000 Starbucks locations nationwide. Loyal patrons typically receive a “Pick of the Week” card with a code that “unlocks” a specific downloadable track from iTunes. Now there are reports that the duo are throwing free iOS apps into the mix as well.
According to reports, Starbucks will now be offering a free iOS app to those who come in and puchase a drink or snack. As with the music track offering, patrons will be given a card with a code on the back that “unlocks” a specific app from the App Store. To start things off right, Apple has authorized the $5.99 Shazam Encore app (iTunes) as the first free offering (seen right).
So far there’s no indication that this Pick of the Week program for iOS apps will replace or simply join the current music track of the week offering. There’s also no indication that customers have a choice of either the track or app if both are provided: will Starbucks offer both simultaneously so that patrons can decide between the two, or will it offer a free app one week and a free app during the next week?
Distributing free apps to Starbucks customers is rather surprising news for Apple. Most of the time iOS apps are bit pricier than the standard $1.29 music track purchased from iTunes. But it’s highly unlikely that the new Starbucks program has anything to do with Amazon’s Free App of the Day on the Android Appstore… although Amazon did make the Shazam Encore app available free for a day in recent months.
CNET reports that both Starbucks and Apple declined to comment. There’s also no indication if Shazam Entertainment will lose any revenue due to its app being offered free for a week, or if Apple will provide the developer with some type of compensation during the promotion. Unfortunately, there’s also no indication that the free iOS apps will be available in Starbucks stores outside the United States.
Wednesday Amazon launched the Kindle Cloud Reader, an HTML5-based app that runs within Google Chrome and Apple Safari browsers. And while the launch seemingly spits in Apple’s face by bypassing the App Store “tax,” don’t pull out the torches and pitchforks just yet: this reader app is rather limited in its overall reach to Kindle users.
As it stands now, the Kindle Cloud Reader works with Chrome for the Mac, PC, Linux and Chromebook. On the Safari front, it works on the Mac, PC and iPad using iOS 4 or greater. That said, you can’t use the app on the iPhone, iPod Touch or any of the Android devices. Consumers trying to access the HTML5 reader with anything other than what’s listed will receive a “your browser isn’t supported yet” error.
But it’s a start. Users can get instant access to their Kindle library and read books either online or offline – Kindle will automatically synchronize your last page read, bookmarks, notes, and highlights regardless the device or connection. Kindle Cloud Reader is even optimized for the iPad and lets all users shop for books within the integrated Kindle Store. (How you like them apples, Apple?)
After some yo-yoing availability, Skype for iPad has finally been officially released.
Oh, what a night. Yesterday evening, Skype for iPad cropped up in the App Store and was available for download. However, not too long after, it was pulled. The official Skype Twitter account acknowledged that the app had been pushed live but said it was an accidental launch.
“To ensure your best Skype experience, we’ve temporarily removed Skype for iPad which went live prematurely today,” the company said at about midnight last night, adding, “We know you’ve been eagerly awaiting Skype for iPad and apologize for the inconvenience.”
Fortunately, for those of you not quick enough to nab the app during the short time it was live, Skype seems to have decided that the iPad app is ready for public consumption after all.
“Finally, Skype for iPad is now available,” the company tweeted this morning.
In a blog post published at the same time, Skype’s Rick Osterloh, Head of Product Management, said that two-way video calling, instant messaging, contacts, navigation and SMS-messaging had all been optimized for iPad. Users will also be able to switch between the iPad’s front-facing and rear-facing cameras depending on what they want the caller to see. The app is free and will work over both WiFi and 3G.
Apple has now updated its iCloud.com with a new official login page that’s built onto a virtual machined aluminum unibody badge. Those of you rocking iOS 5 or 10.7.2 and who’ve also created an iCloud account are probably already busy frolicking through email, editing contacts and slinging calendar events all from the comfort of your browser. A screenshot from MacRumors also shows the addition of an iWork section, which we’d surmise means the previously siloed iWork beta now has a new place to call home.
And if you’re wondering how much it’ll cost you to claim more than those 5GB that Apple’s tossing in gratis, the folks over at Electronista have confirmed that an extra 10GB will cost $20 per year, while an extra 20GB runs $40 / year and an extra 50GB will demand $100 per annum.
So, the iOS devices from Apple do not have any support at all for Flash whatsoever, but fret not because Skyfire browser is there to save the day by allowing Flash videos to be viewed on the devices. Unfortunately, since the browser was launched for iOS devices late last year, it seems like the pickup rate for hasn’t been very good lately and the company has decided to release a standalone Flash player for iOS devices called VideoQ.
If you’re hoping you could play your Flash games on either Skyfire or this new VideoQ app, don’t be too happy yet because it only works for video. How VideoQ works is instead of playing the video itself, it will be rendered and coded into a HTML 5 compatible format and played in the VideoQ app. What’s different between VideoQ and the Skyfire browser is while Skyfire is a browser itself, Video can work with other mobile browsers like Safari and Opera. Users can tap the “Mail Link to this Page” option in the browser and have it sent to video@skyfire.com . Once they log into the VideoQ app, all the mailed links will be queued and ready for playback.
That’s not all VideoQ has to offer, Skyfire says that its streaming video achieves average data savings of 75% compared to watching the same video natively so if you don’t mind the poorer quality, and don’t mind switching between your browser and VideoQ, it could save you quite a lot of data. VideoQ is currently available in the U.S. and Canadian App Store and will be available in more countries in the near future.
The wonders of iPlayer on the iPad are no longer Brits-only. As of today, iPad users in 11 other countries across Europe can subscribe to the service for €7 per month or €50 per year. That equates to $10 — just about living up to BBC’s promised maximum price. The subscription grants access to a wealth of TV classics, like Fawlty Towers and Only Fools & Horses, as well as unwitting comedies like EastEnders. Of course, the highly acclaim Top Gear is also available, for those who like cars and middle-aged men in pointy shoes with lame jokes. The app will allow for downloading as well as streaming, and marks a “pilot phase” for the service, which should hopefully reach the former colonial outpost of America before too long.
Mark Zuckerberg ruffled some feathers when he said the iPad “isn’t mobile” enough to deserve a dedicated Facebook app. But now he’s probably having a second thought after Apple successfully selling millions of iPads all over the world.
TechCrunch just revealed that not only has Facebook created a fully-fledged iPad app, they’ve even released it — albeit in secret. The code lies buried in yesterday’s update to the iPhone app and it’s entirely executable on jailbroken tablets.
What’s the software like? Well, TechCrunch reckons the left-sided navigation system and use of overlay menus is “great,” as is the ability to chat with buddies while simultaneously doing other Facebook tasks in landscape mode. There’s also a ton of screen grabs at the source link which tell much of the story.
When Apple snatched up Siri back in April, we wonder what exactly Cupertino was planning for the voice controlled virtual assistant. Well, the answer, according to a new leak, is unsurprisingly obvious: iOS integration.
A screenshot leaked to 9to5Mac flaunts an “Assistant” feature presumably built into a firmware update. To back up the screenshot, the aforesaid site dove into the iOS SDK and uncovered code describing Siri-like use of the iPhone’s location, contact list, and song metadata. The code also outlined a “speaker” feature, opening a door for further Nuance integration in Apple products.
Sounds awesome? Sure does, but take it with a pint of salt, as 9to5′s source says the assistant feature only just went into testing, and may not be ready in time for Apple’s next iPhone. Hit the source link to see the code and conjecture for yourself.
Less than ten days after iOS 4.3.4 parachuted in to fix that nasty PDF exploit, Apple’s gone and dropped another iOS update. So what’ll Cupertino’s latest fix today? Build 8L1 — or 8E600 on 4.2.10 if you’re using the CDMA version — apparently nixes a vulnerability with “certificate validation,” or you know, Apple’s just really fond of keeping all you hackers on your toes. Either way, it’s time to fire up iTunes. And oh by the way, this 4.3.5 can still be jailbroken using redSnow, tethered of course. How many more updates until iOS 5 officially lands?
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